


Guiding Fallen Stars

by RegalMisfortune



Category: The Yogscast
Genre: Also has nyctophobia, At least as far as we know, But they tolerate each other anyway, Colors, Honeydew and Lalna argue a lot, I have no idea how to use this site, I was told to post this story here, I'm sorry for the inconvenience, Mute!Xephos, Xephos is an insomniac, Xephos sees things, in a good way, or else, spriggan-esque!Martyn!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-29
Updated: 2015-03-02
Packaged: 2018-03-09 13:01:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3250631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RegalMisfortune/pseuds/RegalMisfortune
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"He could recall only a portion of what had transpired- emotions and sensations that fleeted across his mindscape, dancing away when he tried to ponder further about them, leaving him to grasp at the faint trails they left behind."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I originally wrote this story on fanfiction.net, but then someone on Tumblr liked it and one thing lead to another and here I am posting the prologue and first three chapters as a sort of trial run. 
> 
> Also on Deviantart.
> 
> (I am very sorry if the layout turns out horrid- I have no idea how to use this site).  
> (Oh, and if anyone sees something that needs to be edited, please let me know. I'm also horrid at editing without help).  
> (Also I am very sorry if I mess things up. I'm rather new to this whole Yogscast fandom thing and I'm doing my best to try to catch up)

He could recall only a portion of what had transpired- emotions and sensations that fleeted across his mindscape, dancing away when he tried to ponder further about them, leaving him to grasp at the faint trails they left behind.

He remembered the darkness; the empty lightlessness that wrapped tightly around his being, slowly pressing in on him in its vice-like grip. He remembered the way it seemed to steal away any breath he tried to draw in, seizing his body in a constant state of suffocation. He constantly struggled to breathe, yet the motion was meaningless as nothing came in nor out of him. He tried to find an escape from the eerie, oppressing blackness that consumed him, but he found himself unable to move at all. He recalled how his heart thrummed against his chest like a caged creature as panic and fear overtook him. The pounding in his ears was the only thing he heard, but it brought him no comfort as the darkness coiled and compressed about him.

The next thing his mind jumped to was this loud, earsplitting noise. It shattered through the pounding in his ears, drowning out the previous constant sound with its terrifying screech. Heat seemed to have found his previous nonexistent lungs as he gasped and spluttered. Limbs he did not recall having before were flailing and scrambling as the noise continued in a mixture of deafening tones and pitches. Panic still clutched his heart, but it seemed to fuel his being into motion as he fled through the inky blackness that surrounded him.

And then he was falling.

Air berated his ears, but he had lost the use of his lungs once more as his feeble limbs continued to spiral out of control, unable to take purchase on anything solid or slow his decent into the unknown. He vaguely recalled the darkness retreating at brief intervals, leaving streaks of scarlet and white with bursts of brilliant gold engraved in his memory, but nothing definable as the colors flashed and swirled together amongst the blackness. His descent ended suddenly when he hit something hard, jerking him out of his plummet, but all feeling and thought left him at the moment the impact, leaving him to sink into the blackness of his own consciousness without any pain or sound to remind him of his existence. The last thing he remembered before the inky fingers of black devoured his consciousness was a blur of of gold before it too faded into the darkness.


	2. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Xephos wakes up and sees things. Honeydew makes an appearance.

The blackness had receded into a world of brown. He stared at it, fascinated as he took in the many patterns and shades etched into the brown. It slowly dawned on him that he was positioned on his back on something comfortable, if slightly lumpy, and that he was looking upward. A ceiling, his mind provided hazily, but as to why he knew that when the concept of a ceiling was foreign to him was beyond his comprehension at the moment. He simply knew that it was ceiling, and that was that.

Not wanting to ponder on the marvel called a ceiling any longer, he let his vision travel downward to look about him, letting his mind supply him with words for the things he was looking at without questioning the technicalities as to why he knew them. He was residing on some sort of flat thing made of lumpy, but soft material with a knotted pine frame as a red sheet made of the same soft fabric covered his being. A bed, his mind supplied, after he thought about the lumpy furniture for a short while. He was in a room that contained very little besides the bed, and a wardrobe off in a corner. There was a window on one side of the room, a door on the other, and the bed he resided on in the middle. He only glanced at the window as the dark exterior was too eerie similar to the darkness in his memory, shivering at the even the vague brush upon the suppressing blackness he remembered. The room itself was thankfully not dark like the outside. Instead it was alight with flickering flames topped on sticks that were hooked onto the walls, casting the room in a soft fiery glow.

He slowly brought himself into a sitting position, his limbs sending tingling pain like tiny claws skittering up his flesh. He rested a pair in his lap, his gaze turning to look at himself now. His torso was wrapped in a white material with three, light blue stripes. It was much lighter and thinner than the material that he was resting on, the texture strangely smooth. It seemed rather loose at the shoulders but a bit short in length as he could feel a breeze on his back where the fabric hitched up. The sleeves hung close to his elbows, leaving his arms bare.

His gaze was drawn from the strange material he wore about his chest to the limbs in his lap. He counted ten fingers on a pair of hands, the skin a seemingly pale peachy color until a closer inspection revealed it to contain a slight blue tinge to the flesh. His arms held more blue to it, streaks of raised, faded blue skin created a chaotic display of parallel stripes and jagged edges across pale background. Scars, the word flitted across his mind. They did not hurt, so he moved his attention to his hands once more. He wiggled his fingers hesitantly, not quite sure how they worked. They moved accordingly to what he wanted them to do, and so after a little practice he gathered the confidence to peel away the scarlet sheet of soft material that laid upon him.

Underneath he found his other set of limbs, wrapped in the same material as the sheet had been only in dark brown instead of red. It was a tad bit abundant in length and quite loose in the waist as it had slipped down when he sat up. A pair of feet adorned with five toes apiece peered at him from under the wrapped fabric, threatening to disappear under the lengthy material. He wiggled those as well, staring in fascination as he moved each toe.

With each toe functioning and accounted for, he slowly shifted his weight around. His feet dangled over the edge of the furniture he sat on, his knees curled up so his feet hovered just above the floor. He hesitated, staring dauntedly at the stone floor beneath him before he let his knees relax, settling his feet onto the floor.

Something jolted through his being, shooting up from the bottoms of his feet. He yanked them back up not even a second after making contact, staring at the floor as his heart nearly escaped out of his throat. The strange feeling had ceased as soon as he stopped touching the floor. He continued to eye the stone warily, moving his toes to make sure they functioned. Not finding any harm to his being, he gingerly lowered them to the floor once more.

The feeling returned as soon as his skin touched the stone, a weird, tingly feeling as if some sort of invisible vines were curling up his legs. It wasn't malevolent, for some reason he knew, and it seemed to hum beneath him as it wrapped around him in a friendly, welcoming embrace.

Unconsciously he blinked.

In that moment the world changed. No longer was it bathed in browns of the wood and flickering firelight, but instead was covered in a soft glow of color. Everything seemed to be converted to a soft gold. It covered the stone floors and the wooden walls, twirling and waving like they were in the presence of a constantly changing breeze. A few tendrils circled about his body, weaving over his legs and brushing against his chest. He noticed, watching the tendrils, that he himself wasn't a shade of yellow, but instead glowed a rich azure. It was coiled tightly to his skin almost fearfully, yet as he relaxed in realization that the sudden change in color was not any harm to him, the blue began to slowly spout and brush against the golden tendrils. It was... comforting, easing his previous worries as the gold continued to shift and wrap harmlessly around him in its warm energy. Soon the azure was spreading throughout the rest of the room, exploring every piece of it as the coils brushed against the walls. His mind could not supply him with a name for what he was seeing, yet he could not bring himself to worry about it.

The azure tendrils had found themselves under the doorway, and he jolted when he felt another energy that wasn't the comforting yellows. It had been a polished, yet rocky feeling that seemed to ebb a wave of slight worry. Startled by the unfamiliar sensation, the azure shot straight back towards him, retreating from the room and returned to residing just above his skin as the door opened to reveal a short being bathed in the color of rust.

He blinked once more, finding his vision reverting back to what it was when he woke up, the glowing colors melting into browns and grays once more. He briefly wondered what had happened, but his focus was on the newcomer.

The being who opened the door was a short, stocky being with broad shoulders and large arms. He wore nothing but a belt around his barrel-like chest, his leggings made of metal and the same brown material as his belt. His eyes were a beady black that peered up at him, and his face sported a magnificent orange beard with small braids amongst the bright mass of hair. The top of his head was hidden under a large horned helmet, but he knew for certain that there would be more orange hair under it.

A mouth appeared in the mass of the short being's beard as lips curled to expose teeth in a wide, toothy smile, radiating a sense of relief and happiness. The bearded man did not seem to be a threat, so he relaxed just slightly within the man's presence.

He watched, transfixed as the lips moved and the being made a various amount of noise. He was speaking, his brain supplied helpfully, but he could not understand the bearded fellow no matter how much he tried to focus on the noise. The short being seemed to have realized this fact after speaking for a bit, returning his curious stare with a look of bewilderment before he held up one large, stubbly finger in the air and disappeared back out the door again.

He watched with curiosity as the short-statured man returned, approaching him with something in his grasp. He stiffened as the large hands reached for him, but he felt no threat from the man, and so he let him pin something to his blue-striped shirt. All the while the man was making noise, but it wasn't until a strange vaguely triangular shaped button was placed on his person when the noise crackled into focus.

"-thought it would be a hilarious idea to see what a Creeper would say and spent the entire night stalking one around trying to pin this thingy on it. Nearly blew up my wheat field, the crazy bugger."

He stared wide-eyed at the vibrant-bearded man, surprised and awed by suddenly being able to understand him, despite not knowing half of what he was talking about. He watched the man's mouth as he spoke, his tongue reaching different parts of his mouth as the words flowed out in that gruff, yet gentle voice. He only half listened to what the short man was rambling about- something along the lines of finding him in the nearby river (whatever that was), and that he was glad that there was nothing broken or visible injuries on his person. He had also dug up some clothes that he was wearing now from someone (which he had an odd sensation that his brain told him was suspicion if the articles of clothing were stolen rather than borrowed, judging from the hesitation in the bearded man's words) and that although they didn't fit him very well it was better than going nude like the bearded man found him in.

A desire to speak as well bubbled inside him, entranced by the sounds the man was weaving to communicate with, but did he even have a tongue to use? He focused on his own mouth, finding himself licking the back of his teeth. That answered that question. He moved his tongue around, experimenting with the same positions that the short man was using to convey his words, although it was limited as he did not open his mouth (for some reason he felt that would be rude to be practicing sounds while the man was talking).

"In any case, I am Honeydew! What's your name?"

The question pulled him out of his inner examination of his mouth and returned his unblinking gaze back to the short being. He didn't even ponder on the question, his name jumping out from the void of his memory and onto the tip of his tongue as he opened his mouth to speak, taking great care to use the position of tongue and lip like he'd seen the bearded man use. Inwardly he was proud with himself at his success, but that only lasted a mere second after his tongue stopped moving and he realized that the bearded fellow was giving him an odd look when it dawned on him what went wrong. He didn't make any noise.

The corners of his lips felt heavy for some reason, tugging towards the floor slightly as he furrowed his brow in confusion. He did the proper steps, didn't he? He made sure his tongue were in the right positions, starting from the top of his mouth just behind his teeth and opened his mouth just enough to brush his lower lip against his top teeth before pulling his lips out from his teeth, his tongue behind his lower teeth as he finished by rising his tongue to the top of his mouth again. Yet none of the carefully placed syllables were sounded, and his name was left inaudible.

The short man- Honeydew, got over the strangeness quickly as he smiled toothily. "Do that again one more time, just slow it down a tad." The bearded man was watching his lips, he noticed, much to his pleasant surprise. This short man barely knew him (and he barely knew himself at that), but he was willing to work around this strange muteness that he found himself possessing. He happily complied, putting his tongue back in the similar motion of his name, yet once more not a sound escaped his lips.

"Xephos?" Honeydew said slowly after reading his lip movements, as if testing the name with his own tongue. His lips curled back up into a smile from its previous thoughtful expression as he laughed, clapping the newly-dubbed man on the shoulder with a heavy hand. "Well then, Xephos, you hungry?"

Xephos found his own lips mimicking Honeydew's, pulling up just slightly at the corners as the stocky man bustled away and rambled on about the world around them and adventures he had since he came to the surface (he later identified himself as a Dwarf- a being that lived under the earth and endlessly mined) throughout most of the night as they ate through some odd but delicious tasting item called pork. Honeydew ate most of it, but Xephos did not mind, too enthralled by the stories of what was around him to worry about where the food was going to.


	3. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Honeydew sits Xephos down to teach him anything that's important. Xephos also learns a little bit about himself and the alternate colors that he sees.

Xephos had learned many things over the next few days from Honeydew the Dwarf. The following morning after he had awoken, the bearded man deemed him able to stand up and walk around. It had taken some time to get used to his legs- the Dwarf comparing him to that of a newborn sheep from between his chortling- but he had managed to get around on his own without stumbling over his own feet every two steps after awhile.

The brown trousers he wore turned out to be exceedingly long. The legs seemed to swim around his feet, and no matter how many times he tried rolling them up, they would work themselves back to getting under his feet. With no boots or shoes his size, Xephos had learned to simply ignore the way the hems dragged in the dirt and work around trying not to trip on the extra fabric. Whoever Honeydew borrowed the clothes from certainly had long legs... . At least it fit snugly around his waist with no trouble at all.

The shirt in contrast was a mixture of wide and short. The shoulders sagged, stretched out from a man who had greater girth in the shoulders than Xephos' own slender ones. This helped the sleeves drag past his elbows, of which he was thankful for as it covered just a tiny bit more of the strange pale scars that littered his flesh. The main body of the shirt, however, was a tad too short, causing the shirt to ride up to expose his back and stomach whenever he bent over or stretched upward. This too he learned to ignore, as there was little other choice he had in regard to clothing.

Xephos turned out to be a tall fellow, or at least that's what Honeydew told him. He had noticed his height himself, as he had nothing to compare to until he managed to stand beside the Dwarf without toppling over, finding the orange-bearded man only rising to the height of his waist. The Dwarf made it up in sheer bulk and shoulder-width, as Xephos was quite slim and increasingly limber with his long limbs- an exact opposite of his stocky companion.

Once he had mastered the ability of walking without falling on his face every other step, Honeydew had shown him around his home. It turned out to be a chaotic, but humble home made from various woods and stone. There were several rooms, most filled with large chests that lined the walls a tables that was strewn with a mixture of dirty plates, shards of stone, raw iron ore, and pieces of wood. That day was spent with the pair sitting by a fairly clean table as Honeydew pulled all sorts of ores and materials out of the chests, determined to teach Xephos all he knew once he realized the quiet man had no idea what he had been talking about.

Xephos learned the appearance of every ore and their basic uses that day, absorbing everything that the Dwarf said like a sponge. There were so many things to learn! Marble, redstone, cobblestone, coal, iron, granite- there were just so much to comprehend in such a short time. Honeydew went through every chest, pointing out every ore to him and explaining some of the things that could be done with it like armor, furnaces, even machines (although he said he was utter pants at the technology bit). Xephos was amazed, and wanted to continue to learn even as the skies turned dark and Honeydew ushered them both to bed.

Not being able to sleep at all in a mixture of not feeling fatigue at all and fearing the darkness every time he closed his eyes, Xephos spent the night scouring through the chests, leaving the Dwarf snoring loudly in the second bedroom the home had to offer. Every chest was filled with so many things, and not just ores. He had found an entire chest stock full of tools, swords, and various pieces of armor. He spent hours looking over all the tools, some of their purposes tickling his mind, while others were lost to him.

Examining the content of the chests was not the only thing Xephos did while his new Dwarven friend slept. He had blinked once more to let the world blur into its alternate colors and further examined it. He noticed that not everything was a shade of yellow. A chest full of seeds and saplings in little pots near the doorway gave off an emerald-y glow which leaned towards him when he wasn't looking, but when he brushed his azure tendrils close to the green it would shy away. The wood also held a flicker of emerald, but it had mostly faded to a pale green with rusty speckles. The tools, the chests and the ores Honeydew had mined up also lacked the golden swirls, and instead were various colors all tinted with the same rusty red that the Dwarf possessed.

Xephos came to a hypothesis that Honeydew's colors rubbed off on the things he made or mined. Yet if that was the case, why was there so much gold in the room he had woken up in?

He had gotten an off-handed answer the next morning when the Dwarf showed him how to make crude tools out of the supplies he had- lamenting the fact that he didn't have a good furnace or anvil yet like he did back in his Dwarven mountain home as of yet. Honeydew seemed to dislike the silence with company present, and filled it in with his own rambling despite the conversation being one-sided. He told the tale of how he was kicked out of his home for some reason he did not get into detail to, and had stumbled across the then small hut close to a cluster of trees and a river amongst the plains.

"No one left a note, so I settled in," the Dwarf said cheerfully. "Been abandoned for so long the dust must've been ankle deep!"

The explanation Honeydew had added onto the place a bit, expanding from what was now the bedroom. It hadn't quite explained why that one room was completely gold and lacking the typical colors the materials contained, but Xephos decided to put it off to the side and come back once he had learned a bit more about the strange colors.

The Dwarf rambled throughout the day, telling Xephos his goals and dreams now he was banished from his home. His dream was to make a factory that produced some sort of Dwarven specialty called Jaffa Cakes, which he decided that here seemed like a perfect spot to start. The Dwarf went on and on about how delicious the delicacies were, but most of it went over Xephos' head. He nodded whenever he felt was necessary to make it seem like he was following, as he didn't want to make his new companion feel like he was being ignored.

Crafting tools was hard. Xephos had cut his hands on sharp stone on more than one occasion when Honeydew was instructing him how to make a stone axe with nothing but a piece of rock, a stick, and some leather to tie the two together. The Dwarf had been startled when Xephos' blood turned out to be blue and nearly dropped a piece of iron ore on his foot in shock. Apparently blood was typically red here. It blew over quite quickly when his wounds healed within several seconds- another quirky factor- and Xephos finally managed to make an axe where the stone head didn't keep coming off. The tools would be used later, but by the time they finished making several crude axes, the day was nearly over and the pair settled in for the night.

The third day Honeydew and Xephos went to herd in some animals to bring back closer to the house. The Dwarf had planned on building a barn but it would be easier to keep the animals close to home. Xephos had been blown away by stepping out into the warm sunlight. The grass beneath his feet was cool and there were so many sights to see, both normally and in the alternate coloration he saw whenever he blinked. Trees towered high above them and the grasses tickled his bare skin as he walked on the soft ground. Honeydew had to pull him away from the many flowers as he was too curious and could not try to eat them. Some of the flowers were poisonous, and the Dwarf had to explain to him not to eat anything unless he was told otherwise. It had disappointed Xephos, but at the same time he was happy to learn something new. It didn't stop him from pocketing a few red blossoms into one of his pockets, though.

The animals they had been looking for turned out to be a little ways from the house. Xephos had jumped terribly when a large beast that turned out to be a cow snuck up behind him and licked him. Honeydew had fallen to the ground in laughter, nearly chocking on his own breath while Xephos let out a silent huff of annoyance. The cow took advantage of the two and nabbed the Dwarf's discarded wheat.

Cows, sheep, chickens, and pigs, in the alternate colors, turned out to be light shades close to the color of cream. It made it easier to spot them amongst the swirls of green coming from the surrounding plant life in comparison to the normal view and trying to locate them through tall grass and clusters of trees. The animals themselves were rather adorable, and Xephos had no problems in luring them out with a handful of wheat. Honeydew seemed particularly attached to the pair of pigs they'd found; the gruff, but friendly Dwarf melting into oddly high-pitched cooing all the way back to the house.

It was late in the afternoon when Xephos lead the animals to the river for a drink when he saw himself for the first time. He had been confused at the strange being standing near a cluster of sheep in the reflection on the water, and he stared at it for several minutes before realizing they were wearing the same clothing he was. Inching closer to the water, Xephos took time in examining himself. His eyes were the same azure color as he was in the alternate colors, and he noticed that if he tilted his head away from the light of the sun, casting his face in shadow, his eyes took on an eerie glow. His hair was a dark brown, almost black in color that waved and stuck out all over the place. He saw his lips twitch downward as he lifted a hand to smooth out his wild hair, taming it into place. On his face was more dark hair- a beard much shorter than the Dwarf's. He rather liked it, scratching at the patches of hair on his chin, amused as the prickly feeling crossed his fingertips. There were no scars on his face or neck, to which he was thankful for.

Apart from the glowing eyes- which were a bit freaky to be honest- he didn't look all too bad. Luckily the eyes only seemed to glow in the absence of light, and testing his theory by shadowing his face with a hand, the glowing was brightest when the shadows were darkest. Since he wasn't planning on going anywhere without some sort of light, nor was he considering venturing out in the dark anytime soon, the glowing eyes thing would be easy to hide from his new Dwarf friend. If blue blood weirded the man out, who knew what would happen if he found out about Xephos' glowing eyes.

That evening Honeydew decided to warn Xephos of the dangers of the world, especially what lurked in the night and in the darkness. He sat at the edge of his chair while the Dwarf spoke of zombies that groaned and banged on doors, eager to rip the flesh off his bones; skeletons that wanted to turn anything that moved into pincushions with their deadly archery skills; giant spiders that dropped down from high places onto unsuspecting people's heads; four-legged green beasts called Creepers that violently explode in hopes of taking out whoever trespassed onto their territory or attacked them, and lastly there were the Endermen; tall shadowy figures that glowed with eerie purple light who attacked when provoked or met eye-contact. Many, if not all the monsters came out of caves and the shadows of thick trees to roam about the land to take on anyone who happened to be out in the dark without a light. Honeydew explained that almost all the creatures- apart from Creepers and spiders, were strictly nocturnal. The sunlight even burned zombies and skeletons' crumbled to dust under the heated rays. Endermen just seemed not to like the light, while spiders mostly slept throughout the day so they became relatively passive. Creepers had no limitations, however, but they still tend to stay in the shadows.

Xephos slowly mouthed his worry about the cattle outside, and Honeydew pacified him by the fact that the undead didn't touch them (skeletons' didn't eat and zombies just seemed to want human flesh), while Creepers sometimes hunted sheep and chicken down for food and Spiders ate anything that they caught in their webs. Endermen were a mystery, but the Dwarf claimed he wouldn't surprise him if they did eat cattle. Still, there were many lights out and around the home which would keep the beasts of the night away from banging and groaning outside the dwelling, and the sheep, pigs, cows, and chickens were smart enough to stick close to the safety the light provided.

Despite the comfort of knowing the existing protection of lights outside, Xephos was more terrified of the dark than he was before- the fear twisting from a suffocating blackness to vicious groaning and sharp teeth reaching out to grab him from the dark. He spent the night huddled close to the door of Honeydew's bedroom, listening to his snoring while he kept vigil with a torch in hand until the early morning sun peeked through the windows.


	4. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Xephos gets put to work, Honeydew has a thing of touching people, and Lalna crashes in.

The following week led Xephos to explore more of this new, curious land around him. Honeydew let him help do more that required a greater physical prowess now that the Dwarf was certain there was no lingering injuries to his person. After the animals they had lured closer to the small home settled more or less within a manageable area, the pair began working on making a fence and a barn for a more permanent home for them. Honeydew showed the man which sticks were best for posts and which were best for rails and how to tie the string or leather the correct way to keep the structure from collapsing. It was rough at first, his slender fingers twisting the knots the wrong way or not tapping the post far enough into the soil, but with the careful guidance of the Dwarf, Xephos managed to put up one side of the desired area with fencing. Honeydew had clapped him on the back for his good work- a gesture that puzzled Xephos but slipped it into the back of his mind to question the Dwarf about later- and let him finish the fencing while the Dwarf went out to the woods to haul back logs to make the barn out of.

Making wooden planks out of the lumber was tedious looking, and Xephos watched his companion whittle away at the wood with the meager tools with interest during his pauses in constructing the fence. Honeydew had shot down his pleading blue eyes, telling him it was tricky business making boards, and it would waste wood showing Xephos how to do it just yet when there were so many things left to accomplish. Xephos nodded his head glumly. Just because it made logical sense didn't mean he had to like it.

Xephos had completed the three sides of the fencing just after returning from the midday meal that Honeydew always stopped to consume, leaving the fourth side for the barn to border. His Dwarf companion wasn't finished making boards, and instead led the blue-eyed man around the small house to another fenced in area. The soil here was tilled over; dark earth exposed as green leaves and tall stalks of grassy plants weaved in the gentle breeze. Honeydew explained to him after seeing his tilted head and questioning gaze that this area was the farm, and gave him a quick run-down on which plants were vegetables or wheat and which ones were weeds and needed to be uprooted.

The gardening and the muffled sound of chopping and chipping wood on the other side of the house allowed Xephos to explore the alternate colors of the world around him some more. The plants still held their green hues, but they had the stains of rusty red that seemed to swirl against the natural plant color. Even the soil, which seemed to retain its soft browns, held to the reddish swirls that the Dwarf's footsteps left behind. Xephos' brilliant azure appeared less than eager to cling to everything it touched and leave his body- the glowing tendrils retracting back to him whenever he moved to the next patch of earth without a trace of its presence being there. Even concentrating on letting his colors flow and try to make them stick did not work- the tendrils stubbornly returning back to swirl over his skin as soon as he moved. He decided to let it go for now and experiment on his lack of color sticking later in favor of returning his concentration of pulling a tuft of grass from between short leafy leaves Honeydew referred to as carrots.

With the setting sun the pair retired from their work- Honeydew shooing him inside while he lit the torches outside to chase away any dark creatures that crept within the growing shadows.

While seated at supper, Xephos took the time to examine his companion as he chatted excitedly over his progress, nibbling quietly on some bread. Honeydew's colors swirled about him in his excitement, twitching and dancing to an inaudible beat, but Xephos noticed that despite its happy flailing, the colors did not rise further than a forefinger's height from the stout man's flesh. It flickered and swirled like the flames on the torches, eager to spread higher but afraid to leave its purchase on the short wooden limb it resided on. Xephos' azure tendrils could explore the entire house, trailing over walls and running through the cracks in the floor, and possibly further if it wasn't so dark outside.

Honeydew also liked to touch the blue-eyed, silent man. A slap on the back when Xephos accomplished something for the first time without messing it up, a nudge in the side while the Dwarf chortled at something he himself had said, a brushing of fingers when he passed something to Xephos. Every time their skin made contact, the rusty hues of the Dwarf would wrap around whatever appendage it had touched, gentle and warm despite its rocky texture. Xephos' color would immediately gravitate to Honeydew when he walked into the room, curling about the shorter man's shoulders to try to convey his silent greetings to him. However, it seemed that the Dwarf didn't even feel the touch of the azure against his rust, sometimes even not noticing Xephos' presence until the taller man closed a lid to a chest or set his tools against the wall with a soft thud.

Perhaps it was why the Dwarf liked to touch him, Xephos mused during supper, watching the Dwarf chatter about his plans of building a proper Dwarven forge when the barn was completed. Perhaps there was something wrong with Honeydew's colors, or at least his ability to utilize it with the ease of Xephos' and he had to rely on getting close enough for the rusty tendrils to reach him to convey the feelings that they seemed to hold. Could the Dwarf even see the colors? He wanted to ask, but held his tongue, a ripple of silent fear roiling through his insides. Honeydew already knew about his blue blood and had been a bit...startled... at the fact. What would he think if Xephos asked him about the other colors he could see so clearly every time he blinked? He still hadn't told him about his glowing eyes... and he dreaded the shorter man's reaction. He felt guilty for keeping these secrets from the man, who had been nothing but kind to him, but he didn't want to be viewed as a... a freak. If Honeydew's eyes didn't glow, then it couldn't be what was normal in this place he had fallen to out of the blackness.

The azure coils seeped back towards his skin, curling tightly against his flesh in uncertainty as he blinked, letting the alternate colors melt back into the natural ones. He couldn't tell Honeydew... not now. Perhaps not ever, if he could help it.

Another sleepless night for Xephos befell him as he waited in the flickering torchlight for the snoring in the other room to rouse to words of awakening and the sun's warm rays peek through the polished glass windows. He still did not feel tired as Honeydew did, and his fear to close his eyes to see the inky blackness no longer outside but behind his eyelids would've kept him awake either way. Still he nodded to the Dwarf's inquiry if he slept well and the pair of them went back to work outside after consuming a bit of dried pork.

Honeydew left Xephos to work on the garden as the Dwarf returned to making boards. He let himself revert back to a steady rhythm, shifting, searching, plucking, and neatly piling the weeds he collected between the rows of produce. He let his thoughts drift to what his colored tendrils, invisible to him for now but still present, swirl and explore around the garden lazily, swaying like the wheat in the warm breeze. It was peaceful; the word slipped casually into the forefront of his mind when he tried to pick exactly what he felt. He decided he sort of liked this feeling, and wanted to remain so for the rest of the gardening.

However, his peace came to the end when a high pitch rumbling noise entered his ears. He brushed it off at first for an insect, but when the noise got louder and Honeydew's sudden shout echoed, Xephos looked up from his gardening just in time to see a large shadow, blotched out by the sun, flew right over the small home. The thing barely managed to avoid hitting the roof as it shot past, leaving the Dwarf's cursing behind it as it rolled violently in the air in its descent before crash landing into the shallows of the river nearby.

The thing rose from the water, spluttering, and it wasn't until then that Xephos realized it was a person. Concern jolted through his system as he shot to his feet, ignoring the gate by jumping right over it as he hurried over to the river, barely registering Honeydew's cursing rounding about the corner of the house.

The water was cool to his feet as he waded into the shallows, seeping into the ankles of his trousers, but Xephos did not fret about his clothes as he made his way over to the person who was struggling to get themselves upright in the mud. The blue-eyed man did not stop to inspect them as he reached outward, long fingers taking hold of a wet arm as he pulled the appendage over his shoulder, hoisting the heavier person upright and half dragged, half carried them to shore while they coughed and snorted water out of their lungs and nostrils. It wasn't until they were both safely back on dry land and Xephos settled the other onto the soft grass when the blue-eyed man took to taking the sudden newcomer in.

It was a man, or at least that's what his brain supplied as he gazed over the person's round face. His blond hair hung about his face, dripping water down light cornflower blue eyes. He seemed... young, his mind supplied, at least younger in appearance than Honeydew. But this man did not seem to be a Dwarf. Even while sitting on the grass, his shoulders broad under a soaked white coat, it was obvious he would be taller than Honeydew. Under his white coat he wore a violet shirt, partially untucked from his blue trousers. A pair of polished green lens goggles hung around his neck- possibly around his eyes at one point before his crash landing- a bit of algae dribbling over the side. He had something large strapped to his back, bulky and metallic, but it was dented in several places and something black was leaking from a crack on the side.

The blond seemed to have gotten the water up his nose taken care of as a large hand reached up, brushing the dripping strands of hair out of his face and slicking them back. The blue gazes met and the pair stared at each other for a long moment- Xephos' gaze trailing over the man's body as he felt his colors slip closer in concern to see if the man was injured while the blond stared at someone who was definitely not Honeydew that he had seen overhead before his crash landing. Luckily before the man could open his mouth to question who Xephos was, Honeydew came storming over.

"I bloody told 'ya not to come testing out your 'projects' near here, 'ya crazy bastard!" Honeydew shouted, his Dwarven accent lacing his words as his anger rose to color his cheeks. "The last time you came here my garden nearly got blown off the map!"

"I didn't mean to!" the blond exclaimed, his attention turned away from Xephos and to Honeydew. "I was trying to fly far from the village so they wouldn't try pinning me with arrows again! It's not my fault your house is in the middle of no where!"

Xephos ignored the argument, kneeling down before the oblivious blond as he blinked, switching to the alternate colors.

The man's other colors were a soft, pale turquoise, dull in comparison against Xephos' brilliant azure, but its paleness held an ability to appear cold or warm depending on what other colors were near it. The lighter blueish coils were curious, reaching out to prod at the darker blues as they trailed over the blond's flesh. Like Honeydew's, they didn't appear to be able to travel far, but they were longer- as long as Xephos' hand from fingertip to wrist. They weren't rocky under his color's touch like Honeydew's, rather they were a bit like when he ran his fingers over the forged steel of a sword that the Dwarf had acquired during one of his mining expeditions before Xephos arrived- smooth, yet contained the potential to be sharp. Right now it was a mix of smooth sides and sharpened edges, rippling with defense on Honeydew's side and wary curiosity on Xephos' end. Yet under the metallic touch, there was something else lingering in the coils, a feeling Xephos was uncertain of.

On closer inspection, Xephos noticed that the lighter blues were significantly shorter close to the young man's ribs on his right side. His azure coils gently rubbed against the other blue, watching as the colors bunched together before reaching out to push the unfamiliar tendrils away from the area.

Curious, Xephos reached a hand out, pulling the wet violet cloth of the man's shirt up before his free hand traced over the exposed side.

The blond, in the middle of an argument with Honeydew, yelped at the contact. "The Nether do you think you're doing?!" He swatted at Xephos' hand, visibly wincing as he adjusted himself to avoid the hand.

Xephos blinked, the blues melting back into the normal colors as he glanced up at Honeydew. He opened his mouth, his lips moving to a single word, to convey that the man was injured, but no sound escaped his throat. The Dwarf was used to his silent ways, and managed to read the movements before snorting.

"Serves you right, you know, getting hurt for that stunt," Honeydew growled, but his anger was seeping from his face, replaced by annoyance.

"I'm fine!" the blond said, getting to his feet as it to prove the point, but he wasn't able to suppress the pained look that flitted across his face at the movement. Now standing, the man was taller than the Dwarf, but still shorter than Xephos by about a head and a half.

"Right, and I'm a flying squid," the Dwarf grunted, rolling his eyes at the man's antics. He glanced up towards the sky, scowling at the high sun before turning towards their home. "You coming or what?" he called over his shoulder as he stomped to the door on his short legs.

An unreadable expression crossed the blond's face as he looked over at Xephos. The corner of the man's lips twitched upward at the shorter man's face but he reached out, gently taking the younger male's arm again and helped him towards the house.

"I can walk on my own," the blond grumbled, but didn't struggle. His cheeks did dust a light pink and although invisible, Xephos could feel the turquoise coil under his touch almost hungrily.

The Dwarf was seated at the table when the pair came, his arms crossed as he scowled at the blond as the other man slipped the bulky metal container- no longer dripping black- off his shoulders and letting it hit the floor with a clang. Xephos hovered near the blond, catching the shorter man's attention.

"What do you want?" It wasn't rude, more curious as the cornflower eyes blinked at the taller, paler man.

Xephos tilted his head at the man before pointing at his sopping coat. It would be uncomfortable for the blond to remain in the wet clothing. He could get sick- the phrase flickering across his mind, and although he wasn't sure what "get sick" meant, he felt that it would be very bad for the blond to get it. Naturally he fretted over it, his slender fingers snagging a hem of the white fabric as he tugged on it gently.

Realization flitted over the blond's face, but he hesitated before pulling off the coat and kicked off his boots, water sloshing out of them. Xephos pointed at the violet shirt, causing the man to wrinkle his nose.

"No, I'm keeping this," he said, folding his arms over his chest, his cheeks puffing out in defiance. Xephos felt his eyes narrow as he jabbed his finger once more at the shirt, more demanding than before. Still the blond refused, leaving the two in the staring match.

"Just give him your bloody shirt," Honeydew finally broke the silence with a huff. The blond scowled but gingerly pried the wet fabric over his head and tossed it to the azure-eyed man. Xephos gathered the discarded clothing up and glanced around the house before taking them outside to dry in the sun.

Xephos returned to find the blond kneeling on the floor beside the large metal contraption he had been lugging around, a frown on his face as he wiggled a bit of loose metal.

"My jetpack is trashed," he said with a heavy sigh. "And it took so long to get it to lift up without violently exploding..."

"That's what you get for tinkering with your so-called 'science'!" Honeydew chortled, propping his feet up on a nearby chair as he watched the man. "You're going to get yourself blown up! No wonder the village wants you to move father away!"

"I can't just pick up and move a bloody castle!" the blond exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air and stifling a visible twinge of pain at the motion. "It's not my fault they decided to set up shop so close to it!"

"That's because it was abandoned before you came along!" the Dwarf argued back. "Then you showed up and began sticking your nose into those elemendies-"

"Elements!"

"Whatever. The point is, you gotta stop trying to be so crazy about your experiments! Keep it small- try not to blow anything up. You go all wild over your little 'projects' with your big, grand ideas and they just-" Honeydew made a noise to mimic an explosion, having his fingers close together before flying them apart. "Really, you're worse than I am when it comes to explosives. At least I use mine usefully and in a controlled area!"

The blond rose to his feet, sitting down on a free chair as he crossed his arms and huffed at the Dwarf. From his position, Xephos could see a large red splotch on his side that had blossomed since the last time he checked. Worried and curious, Xephos silently moved over to the man- his back to the doorway that Xephos had entered through- his fingers brushing against the redden patch.

The motion once again startled the blond, causing him to let out an undignified squeak and nearly falling out of his chair.

"Don't do that!" he yelped as Honeydew roared with laughter.

Xephos felt his lips turn upward, and his cheeks heating as he gave the blond a sheepish smile. But the man was no longer protecting his bruised side, and instead gaping at Xephos' face.

"You blush blue..." the blond began slowly, his expression turning from bewilderment to excitement. His eyes snapped down to Xephos' arms- exposed from the elbow down- before grabbing a wrist and pulling the appendage forward. The azure-eyed man stared as the blond ran his fingers over the pale blue scars that lingered over his flesh. His hands were calloused, rough without meaning and a soft peach in coloration against Xephos' almost ghost-like skin. "I thought these were tattoos... but they're not!"

"You're not taking him for an experiment," Honeydew snapped, suddenly going defensive.

"I won't, I won't! I'm just... this is absolutely fascinating." He rubbed a finger on a point on Xephos' arm, bare of scars, watching the flesh turn white before seeping into a soft blue. "Your blood's blue, isn't it." It wasn't a question, but Xephos nodded cautiously anyway. The paler blue eyes met his puzzled azure ones; a sheepish smile of his own crossing the blond's face. "Sorry," he said, letting go of Xephos' arm.

Xephos titled his head to the side before looking to Honeydew, uncertain of what to do in this situation.

Honeydew blew out a sigh. "I don't think Xephos minds," the Dwarf said slowly, looking up at the azure-eyed man for confirmation. Xephos nodded, feeling his lips twitch upward once more. The blond hadn't meant to be rude- he could feel it in the currently invisible coils of color when his fingers ran over Xephos' flesh. He had been bubbling with innocent curiosity and excitement rather than fear or desire to do him harm in order to examine further.

The blond seemed to have noticed the lack of speech, his eyes bouncing from Honeydew to Xephos before noticing the arrow-shaped pin on Xephos' striped shirt. "Where did you find him and why is he wearing my translator that you took from me the last time I was here?" he asked, turning to settle his gaze on Honeydew.

"Didn't understand a word I said," the Dwarf stated. "It must be faulty, I think, since every time he tries to speak nothing comes out. And I fished him out of the river after the meteor shower we had awhile back."

"Really?" The blond perked up, his eyes switching to gaze at Xephos. "I didn't think it could mute someone- try talking."

Xephos stared at the man for a long moment while cornflower blue eyes peered widely up at him before he let out a silent sigh and opened his mouth. His lips moved, letting his tongue touch different parts of his mouth, behind his teeth, or just against his lips, but no matter the effort, not a sound escaped his throat.

The blond's brow furrowed as he rubbed his chin in thought. "Give me the pin," he said, holding a hand out towards the azure-eyed man. Xephos felt his lips twitch downward, but he loosened the pin from his striped shirt and set the metallic device into the outstretched hand. The blond twisted the pin around in his hands, eying it before looking up at Xephos once more. His mouth opened, but the sound that came from his throat was strange. Xephos stared blankly, causing the blond to frown and Honeydew say something else to the other man, but it all fell strangely on Xephos' ears.

The blond pointed to his throat, his lips moving as he gestured from his throat to his lips as he repeated a sound during the motion. Did he...want him to talk? Xephos opened his mouth, his lips moving as he tried to convey the question, but that too fell silent. He could feel slight disappointment roll off of Honeydew, and slow understanding creeping up the blond. The pin was given back to him, and the unrecognizable noise that escaped from the other two's lips became understandable as he tacked the metallic piece back onto its rightful place.

"You must be mute, or at least partially," the blond said, his expression thoughtful. "Maybe you hit your head when you were pulled from the river. Do you remember how you got there?"

Xephos pressed his lips into a thin line, hiding his emotion from his face as the question sunk in. He remembered brief flashes of what had transpired before he awoke in the home of Honeydew, but nothing worth mentioning. Or at least, nothing he wanted to mention. He suppressed a shiver as his mind immediately gravitated towards the suffocating blackness that had been slowly crushing him, and instead shook his head, both to answer the blond's question and to chase away the memory of the inky void that found itself at home in his mind.

"Definitely hit your head, then," the blond said knowingly. "I'm not a doctor, but I'm sure things will come back to you eventually- even your voice." He sounded so sure of himself; Xephos couldn't help but reward him with a wane smile as Honeydew snorted from his current location of rifling through a chest.

The afternoon was a noisy affair, with the blond- whom Xephos found out was named Lalna- and Honeydew continuously arguing over things that went over his head. Despite its coloration, Lalna's side seemed to feel a bit better as the man didn't wince as much as he moved, which made the azure-eyed man back down slightly from his concern over the young man. Through the arguments Xephos learned a few things about the newcomer. He was a self-proclaimed scientist- whatever that meant- and he made experiments or projects that almost always had a tendency to blow up. Yet many things were brilliant- such as the translating pin he wore on his shirt and the metallic box-cylinder flying device which turned out to be what was called a 'jetpack' were nothing but genius. Xephos watched with fascination as the man stole tools from the nearby chests in a vain attempt to patch his jetpack together, complaining all the while that the tools were horrible and why Honeydew didn't have anything better being the Dwarf that he was. Honeydew would shout back at him to keep his grubby paws off his things and swearing to whatever deity that was listening that he was going to shove the man in a chest and dump him in the village well.

It was too far of a walk through the more dangerous parts of the nearby forest to get to the village and therefore to Lalna's home before sunset, so Honeydew let the scientist crash with them for the night- but not after silent mouthing of words and puppy-like azure eyes from Xephos because, no, the front doorstep wasn't suitable for a guest, especially at night! He wasn't going to let the poor man sleep outside in the dark where those creatures the Dwarf had mentioned a few days prior could get to him. He used the same look to make Honeydew cave in on Lalna in order to make him sleep in the bed Xephos had neglected for the past several days. The blond had grumbled about being a light sleeper and he'd be up within an hour or so, but he went to his assigned room nevertheless, bringing his jetpack with him because he would be damned if he woke up and found out that Honeydew had tossed it into the river while he slept.

Xephos couldn't help but smile softly as he settled down at his post against the wall, keeping vigil of the flickering torch near him. Despite all their yelling and arguments, Honeydew wasn't fearful or hating of the scientist, but rather grudgingly impressed of his works despite his rusty hues flicking like agitated tails in annoyance of the man, and Lalna was more teasing in his words to the Dwarf than anything harmful, his colors rolling like the water lapping against the riverbank. Xephos was glad; he liked Lalna, curious of how he could make such complicated contraptions with his hands, but he didn't want to stand in defiance against Honeydew if the Dwarf didn't like the scientist. Here he could like both of them without worry of being caught in the middle of something. He just had to hope that this tentative establishment of tolerance would last.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a small note that "Doctor" Lalna is wrong with his guess so please don't go all cliche reasoning on me. 
> 
> I have to say that I am sorry if I messed Lalna's eye color. I tried looking up pictures, but it's either blue or green. I was a bit partial to the lighter blues, so I made his eye color light cornflower blue. It wasn't the first choice I made of the eyes, though. At first they were sapphire, but I thought it would be a bit too dark, and I had cornflower as Lalna's alternate color. Then his eyes were teal and I made his alternate colors to turquoise so I could get the mixture of blue and green, before deciding that I didn't like teal for an eye color and reused cornflower.
> 
> If there's a spot that I missed editing these colors, please let me know. I'm sure I mixed up speaking of blues or greens and for that I'm sorry.
> 
> Also did I mention I have a Tumblr now? It's under the same name as here, but I have no idea how to link things here so...yeah...
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this (if you have gotten this far). I'll probably hang around for a bit until I write up the next chapter.


	5. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lalna and Honeydew argue some more while they and Xephos go to town. Xephos explores a bit of the negative side of the alternate colors and he and the Dwarf get some shopping done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll apologize right now for any errors there are in this chapter. This is the reason why you don't roll out of bed and immediately start writing. 
> 
> Also thank you everyone for reading! I hope you've enjoyed it this far and I hope you continue to enjoy it!
> 
> If you find any errors, please let me know! I'll go fix them! (especially commas- I have this weird relationship with commas that causes them to show up everywhere even if they're not necessary).

"You could always mix the molten iron with other compounds, which would make the metal stronger when it cooled."

"Or it could make it extremely fragile! I can't afford to do little 'experiments' like you and go "Huh, I wonder what this does" as I pour redstone powder into iron just to see what happens!"

"But, how about-"

"No. Do not go tampering with my design. It's how us Dwarves make it, and it bloody well beats you humans' pathetic attempts tenfold!"

Xephos let out a silent sigh, shaking his head at his two companions despite knowing that neither of them would see the gesture. The day had started early for the trio; Honeydew rousing Lalna from his surprisingly long rest by pushing him off the bed and onto the floor. The Dwarf decided that he didn't trust the scientist to get through the forest without setting something on fire, so he and Xephos were to accompany him with the side plan of going to town to buy the necessary tools and components to build his Dwarven forge once the barn was complete. The Dwarf's rusty hues gave away his worry for the blond, however, especially when he found out that Lalna didn't even have a weapon. The shorter man was quick to rectify that by shoving a chipped iron blade that he had found during one of his mining expeditions into the blond's hands, the rusty hues flicking gently but irritatedly at the turquoise tendrils when the Dwarf brushed by the man on his way out the door.

Xephos was given a dagger rather than a sword, Honeydew muttering something about teaching him how to wield a blade properly later, and a heavy pack full of ores that the Dwarf wished to sell or trade to pay for the expenses the forge was going to bring. Honeydew had a pack as well, although his was much bulkier than the silent man's, who wondered if the Dwarf purposely gave him the lighter pack. Lanla escaped from carrying one as he was lugging his broken jetpack, which annoyed Honeydew to no end.

The forest they currently were traveling through was a bit unnerving to be in. The thick canopy above shadowed the road, the sun creating thin mazes of light on the packed earth before them. If it hadn't been for the pale peeking rays through the leaves and his worry of Honeydew and Lalna making it to town safely, Xephos wouldn't have stepped one foot into the place.

He was still a ball of nerves, his eyes flickering from shadow to shadow as he walked behind the pair who had been arguing over forge designs and metals since they left the house. The alternate colors swirled softly around them in dark shades of green, the tendrils reaching out to curiously touch the azure that was pulled tightly over his skin yet falling short of contact, much to his relief. There were other colors- flits of cream and pale beige that he spotted through the thick greens as the birds or small mammals that the colors represented went on with their daily lives. There had been a splotch of licorice at one point, but it had disappeared as soon as he attempted to reach out to examine it with his azure and had to bat at the greens coils that tried to take hold of the blue. The colors here were strange, almost hungry in their actions. It was slightly terrifying to Xephos, who had been used to the soft touches of the grass beneath his feet and the swaying stalks of wheat, to have gnarls of green trying to snag at his azure with surprising strength.

The pair in front of him never noticed his distress, too engrossed in their argument to pay close attention. Honeydew gave only quick looks over his shoulder every once in awhile to make sure the silent man was still there and hadn't wandered off, but otherwise the situation went unnoticed.

The trees had started to thin out, the sunlight splaying across the forest floor in large patches before the trio came to a stop.

"Well, I suppose this is where we go our separate ways," Lalna said, adjusting the strap of his jetpack as he spoke. "The townsfolk won't want to see my pretty face, and I would draw too much attention on you two. They'd probably toss you over the wall or something if they saw you mucking about with me."

Honeydew grunted, rolling his eyes at the man before slapping the man's lower back that was free of his metallic cargo. "Don't blow yourself up, now," he grumbled. "I don't want to see you crashing into my backyard again, you hear?" Despite his tone, the Dwarf's rusty tendrils were calm, poking teasingly at the turquoise of the scientist.

"Of course, humble Dwarf, sir. I wouldn't dream of it," the scientist grinned, the turquoise jabbing back at the rust.

Lalna then turned to Xephos, his grin softening at the quiet man as the colors swayed in an imaginative breeze. "Make sure he behaves himself," he said, winking at Xephos as he hopped out of another swat from Honeydew. "Don't let him drink all the ale! I know he's a handful but I know you can do it!" the scientist laughed as he disappeared into the undergrowth.

"Annoying little bastard. He didn't even give me back my sword," Honeydew huffed, but his colors didn't match his actions as they waved sadly at the taller man's departure. "Well, come on, then."

Xephos stepped up beside the Dwarf as they made their way towards the ever brightening end of the road, his azure colors easing their agitated coiling and loosening slightly in curiosity at the prospect of seeing a town for the first time.

The trees soon broke way to waving grass and Xephos paused for a moment to stare in awe up at the tall stone walls. No matter if he looked to the far left or to the far right, the wall extended as far as he could see. He stared at the masonry for a moment before forcing his feet to move, stumbling slightly as loose gravel dug into the soles of his feet as he caught up to the Dwarf. Honeydew glanced up at him, his rusty tendrils twitching in an unknown gesture before his attention was drawn to the two guards at the gate.

Xephos let Honeydew speak to the armored men, gazing curiously at their mauve and navy hues swirl about them in boredom before the men moved aside for them to enter.

The silent man took two steps into town before he found himself rooted to the spot, his eyes widening as he took in the scene before him.

He could barely make out the buildings amongst the colors, the hundreds of shades and hues that blended and swirled amongst each other in the marketplace all but hid the architecture around them. A thousand different textures rippled over his azure tendrils that had froze mid-curl as people bustled by carrying baskets of fruit or bundles of fabric, unable to keep up with the switching of the hues that bumped up against his. He couldn't understand the colors and their intricate dancing; angry flicking of citrine meshing together with the humorous rolling of soft raspberry into a chaotic twist amongst the throng of other wild movements and colors that caused his stomach to roil as his mind tried to process everything all at once.

Strong hands were on his shoulders, a soft murmuring slowly becoming audible to his ears as the colors melted and blurred into a familiar rusty hue. He was shaking, he realized hazily, and there was a sharp ache in his chest as his breath felt short and hollow. He was sitting on the ground (when did he sit down?), his back pressed against warm brick. Worry and concern wrapped around his being, spreading from the gentle hands on his shoulders. Xephos' vision gradually sank into focus as he found himself gazing into the anxious black gaze of Honeydew.

"A bit overwhelming, isn't it?" the Dwarf asked, feigning a humorous grin but his colors and his eyes still retained their worry for him even as his breathing began to even out. "I just about had a heart attack when I came to the surface and realized how bright the sun was. I couldn't believe humans were able to live under it without being burned up."

Xephos felt the corner of his lips twitch at his companion's attempt to calm him, glad that he was concerned for his health but guilty that he worried the short man so. He should've realized there would be a lot of colors in a town after Honeydew explained to him how big it was. He should have changed back from seeing the alternate colors as soon as they left the greens of the forest so arriving into the town would have been less of a sensory overload. He had been so awed by the walls, too curious of what the town was really like, that he had all but forgotten to switch back. He took the time now to make sure his azure tendrils were pulled tightly to his being so he wouldn't feel as much and blinked the alternate hues away in hopes that those precautions would at least deafen the results. He knew he couldn't stop feeling the textures and and the movements of the dancing colors, but at least now they wouldn't bother him unless they came into close contact with him. It was one benefit of the others having shorter threads of color than his, he supposed.

"Ready to jump back into the fray?" Honeydew asked, his worry lessening but not disappearing as he picked up the pack that at some point had come off of Xephos' shoulders. Xephos gave a small nod, mentally preparing himself to face the strange chaos of the town once more. Honeydew gave him a look over, seeming to accept that the man had recovered efficiently enough before helping the silent man back to his feet. The Dwarf refused to give the taller man the pack, instead carrying it with one hand while his free hand took hold of Xephos' wrist. "Can't have you getting lost," the stout man said with a toothy grin while the invisible rusty tendrils brushed a warm calm over the tightly coiled azure, easing the anxiety of returning to face the town and the possibility having another episode.

Honeydew's hold on Xephos was what kept the silent man grounded, focusing on the rocky but soothing tendrils of invisible rust as the Dwarf led the pair through the crowded marketplace. Despite not seeing the alternate colors, the azure-eyed man kept his eyes primarily on his short companion as if he happened to look around he would accidentally return to seeing the other hues and disorient him. The Dwarf seemed to have sensed how Xephos tensed when someone bumped into him or tried to shy away from the moving bodies around them to the best of his abilities without tugging on Honeydew's arm, as the Dwarf navigated them to shops or stall with the least amount of people.

It was much more comfortable in one of the shops rather than standing in the street at a stall. The less people present allowed Xephos to look around, sometimes even wander through the racks and shelves as Honeydew bartered with the shopkeeper. At stalls he remained stiff, his fingers brushing against Honeydew's shoulder as the stocky man had to let go of his wrist to carry out his deals. He could feel that Honeydew was glad that he was able to wander a little ways from him in the stores, even as worry continued to roll underneath the cheer.

The shopping for the forge and other necessary tools wasn't the only thing they did. Honeydew surprised Xephos by dragging him to a clothing store, where he was fitted for two pairs of soft black trousers that didn't drag across the ground, several shirts that were either blue or white that had been fashioned in the same style as his current one, and a much needed pair of knee-high leather boots. The shopkeeper had been kind enough to allow him to use his washroom to clean his filthy feet before slipping his toes into the wonderful footwear. Honeydew had to cling to the counter in laughter as Xephos pranced about the store like a child, thrilled that his feet were so comfortable now and amazed at how he didn't realize how cold they had been until they were tucked between warm layers of leather. His cheeks felt sore as his lips moved higher than ever before, separating into the widest, brightest smile he could muster without realizing that he was doing it. The smile didn't fade in the least when the pair left the store, Honeydew's thick fingers wrapped softly around his wrist while the azure-eyed man stared excitedly down at his new boots, his previous anxiety of the crowds forgotten.

It was close to evening now; not having reached the town until almost midday and spent the rest of the afternoon shopping. Honeydew pulled Xephos along, leading him to a building with a strange sign that portrayed a pig with a blanket draped over it and a mug on top of its head. The building had quite a few people, laughing and drinking as they sat at round tables. The Dwarf spoke to a person behind a counter, exchanging some coin for a key before tugging the silent man along up the flight of stairs and into a room with two beds.

"A lady will bring food up for us," the Dwarf said, dropping the heavy packs full of their day's shopping onto the floor with a clunk. "We'll leave in the morning as soon as the sun comes up. Lots of work to be done."

The evening soon melted into twilight, the Dwarf unusually quiet as fatigue settled in. They ate the supper made of boiled potatoes, carrots, and tender beef with gravy before the Dwarf decided to call it a night. His snores were muffled under a pillow as Xephos stood by the window, ignoring the way his eyed glowed a soft blue in the reflection. The streets below were lit by the warm glow of torches, and the walls that protected the large town were also alight with their flickering fires. He couldn't see over the wall, but he knew from remembering the talk between Honeydew and Lalna, the scientist's castle was somewhere beyond the wall. He wished he could see it, but he knew Honeydew would want to return home and not dawdle about. Perhaps another time they could go- maybe Lalna would need something that they could bring along for him. He had been such a nice young man... it made Xephos wonder why the townsfolk disliked him so much. Certainly his projects that he spoke about weren't that terrible, were they?

Letting out a silent sigh, the silent man remained by the window, watching the flickering torches and the occasional flickering shadows of a person walking underneath as they slipped their way back home or a cat prowling by until the horizon began to lighten in hue and the snores behind him became soft snuffles and quiet groans of a stirring Dwarf.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just realized that I tend to end the chapters with Xephos not sleeping. I'll change it up, don't worry! (maybe next chapter?)
> 
> I have also noticed by rereading some of my past works on other sites that I tend not to do lengthy dialogues. I'll try to work on them so there can be a bit more interaction between characters, but I don't know how well they'll turn out.


	6. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Xephos meets a being from the forest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO SORRY for my sudden month-long break. I was both procrastinating and struggling to figure out what to write.  
> I wrote this chapter in blocks, so if there's any strange jumps, please let me know so I can fix it. (it's probably pretty crummy too, for that I am sorry)  
> Again, if there are errors present, even if a tiny one, please let me know so I can fix those too. Thank you!
> 
> Edited Note: I have written some background on Xephos for this story on my tumblr! It's under the same username as this site so please check it out if you're curious (does contain some spoilers, though! Also I still don't know how to link things so if I did I would've put them here... sorry!)

There was something going on in the forest.

Xehpos paused in his hammering, the happy babbling of Honeydew falling deaf on his ears as his azure gaze gazed at the gently waving sea of leaves. He and the Dwarf had been working on the barn all week, and now with the supports and the walls up, they were working on the roof. Honeydew had bought more nails than should be reasonable when they had gone to town, but with Xephos’ inability to hit a stud or the nail so that it wouldn’t go flying off into the unknown, they were going to be needing all the nails they could get. Honeydew had laughed at Xephos’ frustration as he missed a particular stubborn nail over a dozen times before he had hit it so hard it went shooting off and thwacked the Dwarf in the forehead. After that Honeydew showed the azure-eyed man to take it slow and practice his aim. He got a little better, but he was still putting dents into the wood more often than not.

Taking care of the roof left Xephos with little time to peek about with the alternate colors, but even with it being invisible his azure tendrils weaved and explored. He had gotten used to the touch of the tickling greens from the flora and the soft rustling of creams of the fauna that thrived near their quaint home, and even learned to tolerate the more hungry grasps of the trees in the forest nearby.

Yet today the many greens of the forest were more active than normal. He could feel them dance and writhe even with his own colors at a distance, distracted this time not by him but by something else, something deeper in the shadows of the trees as the greens learned and curled towards the forest’s core. Some of the tendrils reached out to his azure, tugging not in a hungrily fashion as before, but in a beckoning, eager sort of way.

“What’cha looking at?”

Xephos startled, the hammer dropping from his hand and sliding off the roof with a heavy scraping noise before hitting the ground with a muted thump. He turned wide azure eyes to his Dwarf companion, who was peering at his face with curiosity.

Xephos stared at Honeydew for a moment before letting his eyes drift back towards the woods as one of the green tendrils tugged a bit too enthusiastically on his colors. Honeydew followed the gaze, his brow furrowing as he tried to see exactly what had attracted his friend’s attention.

“What, is there something in the woods?” the Dwarf asked, his dark eyes going to look at Xephos as his rusty hues rubbed gently against the azure, curious and questioning.

Xephos shook his head, forcing to ignore the eagerness of the trees and busied himself in climbing down the ladder to retrieve the hammer. He saw Honeydew shrug and go back to working, but his colors swirled about in slight confusion and concern. Xephos did his best to ignore the tugging and distracting dancing of the greens, yet it was difficult to concentrate with it constantly tugging on his azure to get his attention.

By the afternoon the tugging of the forest had grown so irritating that Xephos had bound his own colors tight around his body in hope that the other colors would leave him alone. His hope was in vain, for as the day progressed, even the grass and flowers began to act in the same excited manner, their usual gentle caress turning into sharp, needle-like prods that distracted him from his work to the point where he was hitting everything with the hammer other than the nail- including his fingers.

His overall frustration and inability to hammer nails had not gone unnoticed. After lunch Honeydew all but banned Xephos from climbing up the ladder back onto the roof, his worry conveyed through the rust colored hues as the Dwarf rested a hand on Xephos’ arm and suggested that he go and tend to the garden for a little while instead. Xephos complied, but only for the safety of his fingers. Not even gardening was peaceful; the soft green of the vegetable seedlings and stalks of wheat were just as bothersome as the grass and the trees, even if they were a bit gentler in their eager pulling.

The constant nagging was making the azure-eyed man feel ill. He sat himself down on a bare patch of earth in the garden, curling his legs to his chest as he rested his forehead against his knees. His head was beginning to ache, the persistent yanking and prodding and he didn’t know how to make it _stop._ His own colors had swatted at the bothering greens, but that was in the early morning before he pulled the tendrils close to his being. Now his azure hues were not even a finger’s length away from his flesh, curling about him in a bright cloak, scared and confused of what was going on and trying so hard to protect himself from the constant stream of eagerness that the plants sent him.

Xephos lifted his head, his eyes turning to gaze towards the forest. Perhaps… perhaps the plants wanted him to go there? The idea was strange to him, but at the same time it was one of the few that made any sense to him. What would be in there that would make the green colors pull at him so?

Swallowing hard, Xephos’s gaze flickered towards the direction of the muffled pounding of a hammer. He didn’t want to go into the forest without Honeydew; the very place itself without the groping greens put him on edge. It was dark, too dark for his liking, and he simply did not want to enter the forest again. Yet, going into the forest may be the only way to get the plants to cease bothering him.

Gingerly Xephos rose to his feet, stepping around the garden gate as he approached the forest with caution. He was only going to get close, to see if he could spot whatever was making the flora so excited, he told himself. He felt himself suck in his lower lip between his teeth, gnawing on the tender flesh as he took a step into the shadows of the looming trees.

The closer he got to the trees, the colored tendrils had calmed in their prodding, yet he could feel them linger. Blinking let him see how close they were; the greens threaded together around him. When he paused at the foot of the forest the green pressed closer, gently nudging him from behind, as if trying to push him into the dark cover of the foliage.

Reluctantly Xephos complied.

He concentrated on the green swirling about him to take him off the thought of the shadows that lingered under every leaf and past every trunk, knowing that he would freeze or bolt back to the safety of sunlight if he thought of the darkness pressing about him for even a moment. He didn’t realize how deep the green was leading him, not until the trunks of the trees around him were thicker than he was tall and the leaves above him so thick that it was a seamless curtain of deep, dark green.

The green tendrils suddenly stopped pressing against him and despite their weightlessness he stumbled at the lack of presence. Before him was a massive tree, the largest he had ever seen, bigger than the ones around him tenfold. It stretched high above, its leaves overshadowing the others and its roots weaved over and though the soil around it. Xephos stared in awe at the sight, unconsciously taking a step forward towards it. Napier green coils swirled about its being, swirling close towards a lower portion of the trunk. It wasn’t until he followed the swirls downward that he noticed the splash of May green that was suspiciously human-shaped.

Xephos blinked rapidly, the greens melting into the darker hues of the forest and the May green dissipating into tanned skin and bright blond hair. The person before him had their back to him, their hands pressed against the mighty tree’s trunk. The bark seemed to have folded over their fingertips, creeping up their arms like a strange gauntlet. The Napier refused to disappear from his vision, a soft glow around the person that mixed with their visible May green hues. There was a presence in the air, one that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end and vibrate a silent hum in his chest. It felt strange, as if he was intruding on something very important.

Yet Xephos could not move, his eyes wide as he watched the green fade as the person’s hands lifted away from the trunk, the bark remaining on their arms and continued to grow over their flesh as they turned a lapis lazuli gaze to meet azure.

Both pairs of eyes widened, both startled at being caught for two different reasons. Xephos reacted like anyone who had been caught watching something meant to be secret: he ran.

Xephos’s feet slipped on loose leaves and his toes caught on lifted roots as he scrambled back in the direction that he came in, not daring to look back and did not stop until he broke through the trees and into the open afternoon sun.

““It could be one of those tree folk,” Honeydew said thoughtfully at dinner that evening. Xephos had silently mouthed out what had transpired after the Dwarf had gone to call him for dinner and found the azure-eyed man collapsed near the garden, panting, leaves and sticks threaded into his hair. He had tweaked a few details, leaving a writhing pain in his gut as he did so, but he did not want Honeydew to learn that he only went into the woods because he wanted the alternate colors of the trees to stop bothering him. He didn’t want Honeydew to learn anything about the colors he saw, not now. Instead he mentioned of seeing a figure near the edge of the woods and went to investigate, only leading to him tripping in a chase after them after they had darted away.

“They’re like… nature guardians,” the Dwarf went on to explain, stabbing a piece of chicken with a fork. “Human-like creatures who thrive wherever there’s grass and trees and things. They do this weird plant magic. I know of two types: dryads, which are the females, and nature sprites, which are the males, I think. Dryads are usually pretty passive, but between us and the town, they would probably be pretty pissed at us for cutting down all those trees. Nasty pieces of work, dryads are when they get their leaf panties in a bunch.” He popped the slice of meat into his mouth before continuing. “Sprites are a bit different. I have never actually seen one before, but I’ve heard a few stories. They are more secluded than dryads, and a bit more mischievous, but at the same time more skittish of outsiders. Still can be quite nasty if you get on their bad side, or so I’ve heard. Whatever you saw, it’s probably best that we take a break on the barn and plant some of those saplings over there.” Honeydew jutted a thumb towards the many pots of small treelings that sat near the windows at the front of the house. “Best not to piss off them tree folk. I don’t want to wake up and be buried in roots because one of them decided to grow a redwood on top of the house in revenge of the trees being used as lumber.”

Little else was said about the strange nature being that night, but when Honeydew was sleeping Xephos couldn’t help but ponder about the strange person he had met. The Dwarf had said that they could use magic… was the green glow he saw outside the alternate colors this magic? The bark growing on the person’s arm, the strange hum in the air, was this magic as well? Was this power the reason why the colors were acting so strange? The word “magic” was foreign to him, and this time his mind could not supply him with an answer. Xephos did not have enough information to work on, and now as the initial fear of an unknown entity had passed, the azure-eyed man was curious and wanted to learn more of this strange being.

The next morning found the pair loading a small push wagon with their little potted saplings and shovels as promised. The Dwarf pulled the cart, leaving Xephos to carry a sapling that did not quite fit into the cart without severe threat of falling off. They traveled to a location close to where they found the cows a few weeks prior. Xephos had silently mouthed out why they did not plant the trees in the areas that Honeydew had cleared, but Honeydew said that the saplings would have an easier time growing here in the open than being overshadowed by the other trees. The cleared area would eventually grow back in with other flora, and not to worry about it.

The green hues of the plants had calmed significantly since the fiasco yesterday, yet the tendrils still brushed up against azure when Xephos got too close. They spent most of the day planting all the trees, and Xephos was sure he caught glimpses of soft blond amongst the browns and green of the undergrowth, but every time he lifted his head to get a better look there was nothing there.

Still, Xephos was hopeful to meet this strange being, even as they were marching back towards the house with dirt under their nails and empty pots in the cart as the sun started to sink into the horizon behind them.

The rest of the week panned out in a similar manner as that day. Xephos would catch glimpses of blond watching he and Honeydew finish the roof of the barn, build stalls and herd the animals in after collecting enough fodder for them to last until the next time they went to town. Yet the lapis-eyed being remained out of direct sight. Xephos remained hopeful, though, that he would eventually catch up with the strange person so he could satisfy his curiosity as to what they actually were.

However, it was the nature sprite that caught up with Xephos.

It was in the early afternoon. Honeydew had decided to take a quick mining trip and promised to be back before sunset. Xephos had been placing feed into the cows’ pen when the hairs on back of his neck prickled in an all too familiar fashion nary a moment before his blue azure tendrils brushed against something gentle and warm.

He started quite violently, spilling feed onto the floor as he staggered backward while turning at the same time, his shoulders slamming hard into the back wall. He could see the faint glow of his eyes mutely lighting the backs of his arms as he held them out for defense. He could feel his heart thrum against his chest as he stared at the lapis-eyed being who had been standing just behind him before his moment of frantic movement.

They were quite young, their face much like those of the adolescence from town, but their lapis eyes held an ancient presence that displaced their true age. Their skin was a mix of tanned flesh and bark, mostly along the arms to the shoulders and up their neck like an exotic collar. It spread slightly over their chest, breaking up more so along the bare lower torso. Their waist was covered in leaves threaded together, and their legs and feet were bare. There was a strange symbol that peeked out from under their blond bangs, a swirl-like figure that glowed the same May green as their alternate colors. A crown of leafy twigs rested upon their brow, but the branches still seemed very much alive and not just discarded pieces.

The being raised their bark-covered hands, their fingers splayed slightly as they gave a universal sign of non-aggression.

“I mean no harm,” they said, their voice softly masculine, young in pitch but ancient in tone.

Xephos slowly lowered his arms, feeling his cheeks color in embarrassment. He wanted to meet this person for several days, and when he does he immediately freaked out. The azure-eyed man straightened himself out, his gaze lowered as he busied himself in dusting off his clothes, cautiously peeking through the corner of his eyes to the strange bark-person.

The being had lowered their arms, their head tilted to the side as they gazed at him curiously. Xephos paused in his dusting to gaze back, his curiosity returning as the embarrassment faded.

The pair stood there for several minutes, silently examining each other before Xephos decided to be a little bold. He let his vision change to the alternate hues, watching as he let his azure tendrils cautiously approached the May green, brushing up against the soft colors.

He saw the being straightened up for a moment, a flicker of surprise before understanding crossing his lapis eyes before he relaxed. Then the green coils moved, slow and steady like reaching branches, curling about Xephos’ azure in a warm greeting. It promised safety, tranquility, a hopefulness of friendship. The May green was soft, like running his fingers through moss, meaning no harm and equally curious as Xephos was of them.

The gentle texture made Xephos relax, feeling his lips quirk into a small smile, which was returned by the strange half-wood being.

Slowly the being moved, creeping closer towards Xephos. When they were in arms reach the May tendrils brushed against the azure in a soft questioning, to which the azure affirmed.

The being’s hands were coarse as the fingers reached up and brushed along Xephos’ face, physically exploring his features, yet they were surprisingly warm despite the bark. He let the being tip his head back further into the shadows, the green coils conveying their fascination of the soft blue glow they emitted.

Soon the hands drifted over his shoulders and down to his arms, the coarse but gentle fingertips tracing over the many scars on his flesh. Xephos let his own fingers trace over the barked arm of the being, exploring the ridges and bumps of the features. He was so intrigued that he didn’t notice that the free hand had moved until he felt a light pressure on his chest.

Xephos, startled, looked up, gazing at the lapis eyes that crinkled slightly at the corners. “This is why they like you so,” they murmured softly. A small smile crossed their face, but Xephos was left confused.

“It’s alright, child,” the being murmured, sensing his confusion. “The trees have spoken highly of you. There is nothing to worry. All will be discovered in due time.” The hand lowered from his chest, but Xephos was still confused as to what the being meant. Many questions flitted through his mind, but one questioned was on the forefront of his mind when he stretched out his azure tendrils to once more brush against the green as his lips formed the silent inquiry. Who are you?

The being’s smile brightened lightly at the question. “My name cannot be spoken in the language that you hear now. It is loosely translated to ‘One Who Resides in the Little Woods’, but it is a rough meaning. I have taken a liking to the name ‘Martyn’, though.”

Xephos pondered over it, slowly forming the name on his lips. Martyn, a strange name for a strange being. He nodded, affirmed that he managed to place his tongue in the right positions for the name, his mouth moving once more as he introduced himself to them.

“Xephos,” Martyn replied, the name sounding lithe coming off his tongue. “Well then, Xephos, it is nice to meet you finally. But I fear that I must take my leave now. Do not be sad, starchild; we shall see each other again.”

With a soft smile, the being departed from the barn, leaving Xephos standing there both in fascination and confusion and did not stir from his position until he heard the muffled voice of Honeydew calling of his return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we got to see Martyn! I imagined him being this sprite/spriggan-type of person. I used they/them/their for him in this because...well...he's basically half tree (if this bothers people I'm sorry! ;^; )


End file.
